piano

he

He plays this piano every day. He sets up some beats, plays with the keys, and 'sings' into the microphone. So many buttons to press! Wonderful op shop purchase earlier this year.

me

What could be a better op shop purchase than his working piano and microphone? Only a giant floor piano! 

little

he

He is exploring the idea of 'big' and 'little' and likes to point and label things as one or the other. Sometimes he wants clarification; his size-label is posed as a question. I respond that it's relative. He seems okay with that.

me

I met my brand new, littlest friend when he was a day old. He's perfect.

no pants

he

It was so fun to see his little legs out and about again! He wasn't technically 'no pants', but this amazing outfit is short enough that it totally counts in this weather! My aunt made this outfit for him when he was little, this is the first time he's worn it. Need some more special occasions before he grows much more!

me

I made a scarecrow! After achieving perfection in my combination of shirt, hat and sunnies, it just seemed that pants would be superfluous. We don't have a crow problem, so I guess he's actually intended as a scare-pigeon or a scare-bush turkey. He's quite lovely, not so scary. The pigeons that were hanging out with him this morning agree. No sign of turkeys, though.

hand-made

he

This was just the beginning! "Hand!" "Hand!" "Hand!" "Hand!" "Hand!"

me

I made a new batch of guitar picks because they've nearly sold out!

umbrella

he

He has his very own umbrella, which we found at an op shop a few weeks ago and he adores it. He drags it around the house, talks about the colours and pictures on it, and asks for it to be opened, "op, op" (and closed, and opened, and closed...). 

me

It seems that, when each housemate moves away, they leave an awesome, huge umbrella with their ex-employer's logo on it. They are much bigger and better than our own umbrellas so I find this quite exciting (and it's good to look for positives in the sad times - when friends go far away!).

romero

he

A year ago, when I googled playgroups in our area, the one at the Romero Centre was listed as our closest. The timing was wrong for his sleeps back then, but I recently looked into it again. The Romero Centre is a house, just a few streets from here, which supports refugees. The playgroup is all refugee families, and us! He has a great time playing with the kids and the toys. There's a shared morning tea and some craft, and the loveliest atmosphere. Today at playgroup, there was a bag of knitted teddies that the Red Cross had donated for the kids. They were all different and all gorgeous. They insisted that he have one, too (he chose the one with rainbow pants), along with the other kiddies, although I felt a little strange taking something home when we really don't want for anything. It's kind of like a metaphor for how we get involved in things so that we can give/help, and end up taking away much more than we give - a wealth of memories and experiences. And knitted teddies.

me

The first time we went to the Romero Centre playgroup there were a couple of families that came in a mini-bus from the immigration detention centre near the airport (their minders sat in another room and played with their iPhones). Through a conversation with a little girl, I realised that her family spoke Indonesian (which I learnt in high school and uni - although I remember shamefully little...), and I got to have a chat to her parents, using bits of both languages. It was very special! Made the 7 years of language study completely worthwhile. Seriously! This week I was chatting to the mother again, and she was telling me about their boat journey here from Indonesia. Then, this afternoon, I was listening to more political debate on the radio about 'the boats' which, more than ever, seemed to ignore the complex stories and needs of these vulnerable people. These people who have faces and names and ideas and giggles and kindness and hope. These people are not a 'problem'.

I baked strawberry muffins to take for playgroup morning tea today. They were a hit!

needles

he

The child immunisation schedule has just changed, which means less needles for him! Yesterday he had one needle which immunised him against 4 different nasties (the next one isn't until he's 4). The check-up was very fun. As soon as he entered the room, he started reading the eye chart - thought it was great! He chatted to his doctor and found things very funny. All 3 adults (his mum, dad and doc) worked very hard to entertain him while she she checked his ears, eyes, breathing, heart, throat, etc. He thought we were all a bit silly. We ended up settling for an approximate height measurement as he was quite adamant about not standing where and how he needed to for that, measuring his weight was looking like having a similar outcome until he noticed the numbers on the display, which captured his attention long enough to get a reading! It was all a total hoot until the inevitable, sharp, sad ending, but he perked up quickly.

me

I started weaving with recycled fabrics and plastic needles a little while ago. My first creation started as a basket but evolved into a ball, which was immediately loved and appreciated! I've started another one, which may or may not end up being a basket. 

mirch masala

he

Without coming up for air, he quietly (but fervently) polished off half of my mango lassi while keeping his eyes peeled to the Bollywood dancing on the telly. There were also stars hanging from the ceiling, which shows that the place was decorated with him in mind!

me

We'd been meaning to try Mirch Masala Pure Vegetarian Indian Restaurant for ages! We had take-away from there recently (in the hopes that the hot curries would assist in bringing forth the imminent birth of a little munchkin who is currently loitering in my friend's big belly), and decided we needed to actually eat in. There's a very Indian grocery near our place, which is open late at night just like it would be in India, with the same gorgeous customers. To get to the restaurant, you go up the stairs behind the checkout counter. We went with our new housemates, and ordered whatever the guy behind the counter told us to.  There isn't anything from a 'normal' Indian restaurant menu - it's all 'street food'. Three of us have traveled in India but still the dishes tonight were new for us! We were stoked. We'll be back.

uke

he

Usually he chooses a book or his giraffe to take in the pram. The other day he insisted on taking his uke! Held onto it for the whole walk. The next day he insisted on bringing our neighbour's dust brush. 

me

I went along to a ukelele group in West End this afternoon. It was super fun and totally at my level (ie total beginner!), and he played happily for the HOUR with a couple of 'big' girls in the kiddie space, a few metres away. I really did not imagine he would make it THAT easy for me! Definitely going back next week.

velociraptor

he

He visits the museum almost every week. He is really starting to know his way around, and uses words to tell me what he's looking at, or what he's heading for. I love the commentary! He's getting so good at walking backwards as he drags open the drawer displays, that I suspect that it's the forwards/backwards which is the fun bit now, and not seeing what's inside. When we arrived at "Playasaurus Place" (to play with the dinosaurs), he told the lady working there, "Day-daaw", and she grinned and said he was the littlest person she's ever heard say, "Dinosaur". She has clearly been trained in the art of interpreting little-person-prehistoric-talk.

me

It is decidedly impossible for any adult to enter Playasaurus Place and leave without having "Danger, Danger, Velociraptor" playing in their head. For DAYS! It's so powerful that I know at least one friend who will, just from reading this blog post, be suffering such a fate for the foreseeable future.

coffee with a friend

he

 Lovely to start a Wednesday with a friend. When we're lucky enough to find some coinciding spare moments in a couple of busy lives, we catch up for a morning walk to drop her munchkin at school and then catch up over a cuppa. He wandered around the cafe at the bottom of the Ecosciences building, made friends with a security guard and came back regularly for tummy tickles from our pal.

me

I'm becoming increasingly concerned that I'm missing out on something important in life, by not being a coffee person. I've been seriously considering giving it a go. The problem is that, although I LOVE the smell of coffee, I just don't think it tastes nice. So this morning, for the first time, I employed my 'Soy Mocha Strategy', as a first step.

neighbour loveliness

he

Today we are saying farewell to (more) cherished friends/housemates! This is very sad for us grown-ups, but the little guy is either being completely stoic as a coping technique or else there's a slight chance that he just doesn't realise what's going on. They came upstairs and had breakfast with him this morning, and read some stories. It was lovely.

me

A couple of days ago, I had a visit from our next-door neighbours, the ones who we don't know particularly well (our relationship consists of a wave 'hello' each day and a brief history of reciprocal gifting - we've taken homemade chocolates/bikkies over at Christmas and Easter, and they've brought us Taiwanese sweets, matching caps and two ceramic bride-dolls. No kidding!). Their sister's shop is closing and she has lots of food to get rid of - so a bag of it made it to our place! We'll be enjoying some gourmet dressings, curries, spreads, sunflower butter (this is what I'm most excited about!) and lollies. So generous and such lovely neighbours! If only I could remember their names... Terrible!

Brewhouse

he

 Plenty of words for him to read!

me

Plenty of flavours for the grown-ups to taste!

hug

he

He loves to read this book, because it has lots of animal pictures, and only 3 words, although one is repeated many, many, many times. He knows when to say each of the words and it's pretty funny listening as he turns the pages: "Ugg. Ugg. Ugg. Ugg. Ugg Ugg. Ugg. Ugg. Boboooo! Mommy!"

me

I found one of my very favourite childhood poems (by one of my very favourite writers, Shel Silverstein) to share with a friend at a little do that we held for her this week (celebrating the baby that is growing in her belly).

drizzly days

he

Arriving at the city library for shelter and fun on a drizzly day, we were excited to find a school holidays activity in a corner of the space. This meant that he could move back and forth between all of his favourite library activities (the books, the toys, the computers and the interactive mat), PLUS the drawing corner! Unsurprisingly, it was MUCH more fun to tip crayons out of their neat buckets than it was to colour in between the lines. And then stand up and move to another activity without packing up the crayons.

me

Will my washing EVER get dry?!

bike safety

he

He left his helmet on for ages after our ride. Probably a good thing, since he's so keen to check out whatever work his Dad is doing. Safety first!

me

I finally had a go at riding with him on my bike. We stayed on the bike path the whole way, so I didn't have to worry about horrible cars. It wasn't nearly as scary or difficult as I was anticipating! Why didn't I start doing it months ago?! 

courses

he

Earlier this year I took on a semi-voluntary role in helping to organise the Community Orientation Course which runs in West End twice a year. My first course is happening at the moment and I am thoroughly enjoying being a part of it. I very quickly re-evaluated my expectations about how much of the program I'll actually be able to be present and engaged in, with my busy toddler, but we're working on finding a happy balance. One of the earliest sessions of the course this week involved spending time reflecting on our own 'stories' and representing them visually. There could not possibly be a better activity for him to participate in! BIG sheets of paper and a generous selection of crayons, textas, pencils... He's loving exploring the community house where the course is based, and getting to know all of the friendly people. They are being very kind about his cute disruptive presence.

me

My friend organised a Baby First Aid course for 3 little families at her place on the Saturday. It really was a great idea. The presenter, Mick, was fun and clever. We had great food. It certainly didn't feel like a chore. It's been a while since I've done any First Aid courses so the general refresher was valuable, as well as the little-people-specific bits. He slept in their spare room for the duration (perfect!) and woke just in time to meet the CPR babies before they got packed away. He found them a little freaky but was still kind to them. What a sweetie!

favourite

he

His favourite at the moment is LETTERS! We have to stop at every sign we pass (which is a LOT if you know our regular routes) so that he can read all of the letters for me. 

me

My favourite at the moment is chickpeas! After soaking a huge pile of them I spent the afternoon playing in the kitchen. The result was a ridiculous amount of hummus (of course) and a jar of chickpea cookies (sugar-free yet surprisingly delicious and more-ish)! I made them star-shaped in a bid to thwart the inversely proportional relationship between time/effort (spent making food for toddlers) & enjoyment (displayed by toddlers when eating said prepared food) - which a wise friend once warned me about. A twinkle-twinkling success!

spill

he

Soaking up the leadership spill.

me

I spend a great deal of my time cleaning up HIS spills! Early on, I set up a cleaning station on the kitchen bench: spray, cloths, bibs and a bucket for dirty cloths and bibs. It has been OH SO HANDY every day since!

drums

he

He loves the drums too (he loves all music and sound-making activities!). If you mention 'drums', he taps on the nearest book/table/surface. He had a play with electric 'drums', and although the 'buttons' were fun to touch and hear, I still think he prefers the real thing! So do I.

me

I've always been partial to drums and drummers - of any culture! Such fun, powerful, inviting and accessible instruments. Walking home from a work day last week I took a slightly longer route so that I could check out the beats I could hear in the distance. This guy had set up his kit here, and was driving a beautiful rhythm. And what a back drop!

winter solstice

he

Dancing to the live music with the other kids (i.e. standing and bending knees intermittently, watching and smiling)!

me

Ye-ha! The days officially get longer again! We went along to the Winter Solstice festival at Northey Street on the weekend: Saw a lot of familiar faces, ate incredible mushroom dishes, watched fire-twirling and other theatrical delights and wove our way back and forth through the sea of happy punters - wrapped in scarves and topped with beanies.

first night apart

he

He and his Dad take such good care of each other that I am not missed when I'm away!

me

Although 24 hours away from little guy was enough for me, I coped fine. I was quite sad as I drove away. I had a beautiful time with 3 other ladies as a way to celebrate the imminent birth of a friend's 2nd baby. We spent the day/night op-shopping, cafe-ing, crafting, and beaching.

out to dinner with the grandparents

he

He took his parents and grandparents to our favourite toddler-friendly dinner venue (Coorparoo Bowls Club) on Wednesday evening. He had such a great time crawling on couches, strutting around the place like it was his own, building with their blocks and toys, boogying, and snacking on everyone's dinner. It just so happened to be Music Bingo night, and despite his distracted, nonchalant attitude towards the game (continually implying that the music was old and that he didn't recognise much of it), he managed to come 3rd (the only one from our table to score a prize) and received the coveted honour of choosing something from "The Bag of Crap" (1st and 2nd prize are wine and food - much less crappy, but much less fun for him). His little hand foraged around in the bag for a while until he lifted it out, grasping THREE (crap) prizes. Which he was allowed to keep. Two were silly, shiny, tinselled, noise-making whistle/streamers, and one was a beer-branded bottle opener on a lanyard. Funny.

me

I have a cousin who lives in the same city as me! She's the oldest cousin on my Dad's side, and I'm the youngest (so I'm actually closer in age to her kids than to her), but this still isn't a great excuse for not catching up very often! We always enjoy it when we do hang out. Anyway, while my parents were visiting, she spent an evening with us, a lovely stroll and dinner at the pub. As always, I thoroughly enjoyed the easy conversation and stories of people I have so much in common with, yet know so little of. I really am fascinated by families (both those of blood and those of choice) and relationships and connections and I always feel quite reflective after a meeting like this.

garden goodness

he

 There's only so long that a little cherub can stay cooped up inside on a rainy day. So, as it became clear that the relentless drizzle/pour/drizzle/pour pattern would not be broken, he had his first proper session of rain gardening. Such fun! I recently bought him some gorgeous red firemen gumboots at an op shop, and even though he loves to name them, "Boots! Boots!", he struggles to actually walk (forward) in them (the slow, careful sideways shuffle is seriously belly-grabbing hilarious to watch), so this was one aspect of rain gardening that will have its debut another (wet) time.

me

I bought seedlings from our Sunday markets - it's super fun because you get to buy a mixed tray, with any combination you choose. I am most excited about the brussel sprouts because I'd never seen how they grow - check out the picture on the label! Looks like they were all glued on for a prank. We'll see!

we

We came home the other night to find a paper bag full of green goodies, thanks to lovely neighbours up the hill.

making

he

He and I wandered in to check out the new GoMA exhibition, and hopped out again as terrific tree kangaroos an hour later. He made a wallaby mask on the craft table and made this poster on the computer. It was a bit of a juggling act to lift him high enough to get his face into the right spot for the webcam, while he was desperately reaching down to play with the computer mouse and keyboard, but this was our most successful attempt! He LOVED climbing around the kangaroo 'habitat' with the other masked 'kangaroos'. This was an incredibly cute hour.

me

My Mom and I went to a free workshop at the Brisbane Square Library yesterday - basket weaving from recycled fabrics. It was the perfect way to recycle my already-recycled fabrics! The scrappy bits of shirts that were left over from the toddler pants I've been making were perfect for this! Equal to the joy I felt spending the a couple of hours crafting with my Mom was how much I enjoyed the actual 'being there' - the atmosphere, and what the atmosphere brought out in those of us present. Sitting around a fabric-scrap-covered table with a bunch of strangers from all ages and walks of life is such a surprisingly comfortable and comforting setting! Everyone's learning, and everyone shares their own skills and experience and stories, and everyone's completely polite and encouraging. And inspiring. And generous. My favourite bit, though: My Mom shared a memory from when she was very young, lying in a basket under a table. It was WW2 days, and she must have been with one of her great aunts at a quilt-making gathering, where the ladies used to gather around these big weaving tables to collectively create quilts to send to soldiers. My infant Mother was resting under the table, watching these big needles moving in and out, up and down, on the quilting table above her. I can't say anything that adequately sums up how special I think that is. She shared another memory on our walk home. She was a new mother (when my big sis was born) in PNG, and her Aussie friend there - also a new mum - insisted that she learn to knit her baby daughter a jumper. Mom finally gave in when they found, in the Goroka convenience store, a Woman's Weekly with the cover story something like, "Knitting patterns for people who can't knit". She bought the magazine, needles and wool, started out but soon put it away. Sometime later, another friend - a German lady, showed her what to do. Mom did a little more, got frustrated, and put it away. Later still, her Aussie friend helped out again. This pattern continued... Aussie knitter friend helps, Mom tries, finds it frustrating, puts it away, German knitter friend helps, Mom tries a little more, finds it frustrating, puts it away. And on and on. She said it was quite some time before she realised that the Australian style of knitting and the European style of knitting are quite different, possibly opposite, which explains why it was so confusing each time one of her knitter friends tried to teach her. She even remembers them undoing each others' stitches as they were 'wrong'! I think this is sooo funny! She said she did, despite all multi-continental-knitting-style odds, finish one pastel yellow knitted jumper for her little baby girl! When my sister and I were younger, Mom actually arranged for us to have knitting lessons with a friend of hers who'd had more luck learning to knit than she had. As far as I know, it was the Aussie knitting style.